Happy Holidays from Team Maximum PC to You!

As I sit here, in the mountains of Northeast Tennessee, surrounded by friends, family, and other loved ones, I just wanted to take a moment and thank you, our loyal readers, for buying our magazine, visiting the website, reading the newsletter, listening to the podcast, and just plain supporting Maximum PC over the years. The magazine is doing OK in a tough market, and the website has grown beyond our wildest expectations this year; and it’s all thanks to you. The rest of the team and I have a lots of fun putting Maximum PC together, but without you guys around to read it, we’d all have to go out and find significantly less awesome jobs. Speaking for all of us: Katherine, Tom, Gordon, Nathan E., Natalie, Boni, Norman, Alex, Paul, Mark, Pulkit, Andy, Justin, Nathan G., Dave, Michael, Benson, Flo, and myself; I want to wish you all the best during the holidays this year, whatever and wherever you celebrate.

We’re going to let our crack news team off for Christmas, so there won’t be any new news posts tomorrow. I’ll dig up some of my favorite posts from the last year and repost them on the front page (if you have story suggestions, post them in the comments). Assuming I don't drink too much egg nog, they should start showing up in the morning.

I also have a sneak peek at a contest I think you’ll be excited about. Around the Maximum PC offices, we get quite a few cool tchotchkes every day. From limited-run T-shirts and bobbleheads to hardware and accessories, it never really slows down. Until now, we’ve either returned or donated to charity anything over $50 in value, and the rest just piled up on our desks. Starting in 2009, we’re going to give it all away to you guys. From USB-powered mini-fridges to gaming mice to netbooks, I’ve been collecting a ton of gear, and I’m giving it all away to people signed up for my Twitter feed. In addition to sometimes terrifying glimpses into the personal life of a Maximum PC editor, I’ll run regular trivia contests and updates on what Maximum PC is up to. To win, all you need to do is sign up for Twitter and follow yours truly.

So, I hope you and your families have a safe and prosperous holiday, followed by a kick ass New Year! Now, I’ve got to get back to making cake and drinking egg nog…